South Africa’s Sovereignty is Undermined from Within, Not Without

The Editorial Board

– February 16, 2026

4 min read

President Cyril Ramaphosa is wrong to argue that “powerful states” undermine South Africa’s sovereignty – where sovereignty is threatened, the cause can be found in the policies of his own government.

South Africa’s Sovereignty is Undermined from Within, Not Without

Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Global Citizen

In his State of the Nation Address last week, Ramaphosa argued that powerful nations assert dominance over less powerful states and reaffirmed that South Africa’s sovereignty and self-determination are sacrosanct and not negotiable. His implication was that external forces are the main risk to South Africa’s independence and broader success.

That’s wrong.

Sovereignty has a precise meaning. It is the supreme authority of a state within its own territory. It means the power to make and enforce laws, control borders, raise revenue, maintain order, protect property rights, and provide public services without external control. It is about effective domestic authority.

On those measures, South Africa’s challenges are overwhelmingly internal. No foreign government forces municipalities to fail in basic service delivery. No external power dictates that rail networks underperform, ports become inefficient, or power stations collapse. No powerful nation compels the adoption of policies that discourage fixed investment, complicate employment, or undermine growth.

The opposite is true. Whether from Washington, New Delhi, or Beijing, the three powerhouses of the global economy, representing a complete spread of ideologies and political systems, South Africa receives very good and shrewd advice on what it needs to do to lift its rate of growth and thereby the living standards of its people.

Take the example of Johannesburg, where the central business district has gone without electricity for a week and several suburbs in the city have been without reliable water supply for months. The city is arguably the capital of Africa and host to its business and financial centre. Which foreign power caused the local and provincial government to curb services to its citizens and businesses?

Foreign states may pursue their interests robustly. That is normal international behaviour. But South Africa retains full formal sovereignty. It makes its own laws. It sets its own tax policy. It controls its own institutions.